Know the Enemy and Know Yourself
Knowing the enemy and knowing yourself, you can fight a hundred battles without peril. Before she made her move, Veronika first conducted a thorough investigation into the man named Isaac Silvertehr.
He was a former mercenary who had operated across many nations, including the Kingdom and the Pope State. He had taken in Hans, a Holy Knight who had grown disillusioned with the Pope State and defected, along with the former Saintess Sophia, and founded a guild in Gideon. Yet no matter how deeply she dug, she could find no concrete information about Isaac’s true strength. Even when she requested data from the Hades Guild, the only response was silence.
That was when Veronika caught the scent. Isaac Silvertehr was not a man to be provoked lightly.
Slap!
But knowing something and acting on it were two different matters. Veronika raised her hand and struck Isaac across the cheek.
The sudden violence left everyone except the Hydra Guild members stunned.
“That filthy bitch…!!”
“Hold on!! Zeek!!”
“Get off me. I’ll rip that whore apart with my own hands!”
The only one who reacted instantly was Zeek. She lunged forward in open fury, only to be barely restrained by Sophia, who happened to be standing right beside her. Of course, that didn’t mean Sophia and Hans were taking the situation calmly. Hans’s clenched fist was already dripping blood, a silent testament to the murderous rage he was suppressing.
And Veronika drank in every second of their reaction with delight.
Yes. This is it. Frustrating, isn’t it? You want to kill me right this instant, don’t you? Too bad. There’s nothing you can do about it.
A chill raced down her spine, as if every hair on her body had suddenly stood on end. Her head, which had turned slightly away, snapped back into place. He said nothing. He simply watched.
Dangerous. I’m really going to die. It feels like I’m going to die…!
He had done nothing at all. Yet in that moment Veronika understood the boundless depth of power possessed by the man called Isaac Silvertehr. She had felt this exact sensation only once before.
"Die."
The guild master who led the Hades Guild. The monster known as the incarnation of death. The feeling was eerily similar to that creature who embodied death itself.
Precisely because of that, Veronika refused to retreat. Death? What was there to fear? If she died, she died.
Meanwhile, Isaac was deep in thought. Not because he was flustered at being slapped. No. He was carefully considering how he should respond in a way that perfectly fit his concept.
No matter how I look at it, killing someone just because they slapped my cheek would be a fatal setting error.
It was true the act had displeased him. But Isaac was not the kind of man who would abandon his concept over something so trivial. Slowly, he recalled the concept once more. A seasoned veteran who nevertheless threw caution to the wind the moment his family was involved. The key word here was seasoned.
A man with as much experience as Isaac, who hadn’t even touched his family yet, would never lose control and rampage like a fool.
“What do you want?”
As expected, the information was accurate!
Veronika felt a surge of ecstasy. All her meticulous research was finally bearing fruit. Isaac Silvertehr—the guild master who would never overlook anything that threatened his family. So what if she avoided that variable entirely? What if she targeted only him?
According to her gathered intelligence, once the family factor was removed, Isaac Silvertehr was a battle-hardened hero who had seen it all. There was no way such a man would fail to understand the current situation.
Of course, that was still only her personal conviction. In the worst case he might simply draw his sword because the slap had annoyed him. But Veronika paid it no mind. She was simply doing what she loved.
“Kneel.”
“……”
“Right now. Do that, and we won’t lay a finger on your family.”
It was the ultimate pleasure—subjugating a strong man. The Hades Guild Master had not shared her particular tastes, but Isaac Silvertehr was different. At Veronika’s demand, Isaac gave a small nod.
“Understood.”
The Hydra Guild was far more than a mere subsidiary of Hades. It possessed the authority to inspect any guild in Gideon and, when necessary, carry out immediate executions. And Isaac Silvertehr was the kind of man who would gladly offer himself up if it meant protecting his family.
That was the conclusion her exhaustive investigation had reached. Veronika’s conviction had been correct. Before everyone’s eyes, their guild master obediently lowered himself to his knees.
Just the sight of it sent an unbearable thrill racing through her.
How does it feel? This is the master you all serve. Truly pathetic, isn’t he?
Of course, Veronika hadn’t chosen this method purely for her own amusement. A guild master who lost his members’ trust was finished. By displaying such a humiliating spectacle, the guild members would be forced to confront the overwhelming power of the Hades Guild. They would tell themselves there was no other choice, yet they would still look down on their master for being unable to resist.
This was Hades’s way. The strong devour the weak. Only the victor is righteous.
Still, since she had started, she decided to make it even clearer. Veronika deliberately pressed the sole of her shoe down on Isaac’s shoulder.
But in that instant, something seized her ankle in an iron grip.
“Allow me to give you one piece of advice.”
A chill. Another chill. A savage, predatory aura washed over her. The pressure was so intense it felt as if a wild beast had clamped its jaws around her leg. Though his knee touched the ground, the unyielding eyes that stared up at her made Veronika’s entire body tremble.
“Never lay a hand on my family.”
Ah, what formidable eyes. Just imagining breaking that gaze was enough to make heat bloom between her legs.
He kneels for the sake of his family. Heh! Yes, this is the true posture of one who cherishes his family!
Inwardly, however, Isaac was smiling with deep satisfaction.
“Hans, Sophia. I’ll leave things to you for a moment.”
Veronika vanished somewhere with Isaac. He offered no resistance, simply following her without a word. No one moved. Except for one person.
Sophia gripped Zeek’s shoulder with all her strength. She had seen the killing intent in the girl’s posture and instantly understood what she intended to do. Zeek violently shook her off.
“Let go.”
“Zeek! This isn’t the time! You have to hold back!”
“Hold back? When the Master is suffering that kind of humiliation?!”
“Exactly. That’s why we must hold back.”
At last, Hans’s tightly sealed lips opened heavily.
The Hydra Guild was the deadliest blade in Hades’s arsenal. The number of prestigious guilds they had executed over the years was beyond counting. There was no way their guild master, Isaac, didn’t know that.
Set emotion aside. Look at the situation coldly. Objectively.
The Hydra Guild’s intervention was essentially Hades’s own will. Compared to them, what was the Iron Shield? In terms of pure fighting strength, they were no more than ants. That was why Isaac had knelt without resistance. For their sake.
“I cannot allow you to act recklessly.”
“Why not?”
“Because that is the will of our guild master, Isaac!!”
“……”
“Not for himself, but for every single one of us! The Master sacrificed himself!! Do you still not understand?!”
It was frustrating. If they rampaged now, it would render meaningless the humiliation Isaac had swallowed by kneeling. Did these foolish newcomers truly not realize? Of course they did.
Back at Nemea Fortress, Zeek had deduced that the Lion Tribe was no ordinary enemy with only the smallest scrap of information. There was no way someone that sharp would fail to grasp the current situation.
“I know the Master sacrificed himself for us.”
“Then—”
“That’s exactly why I can’t stand it.”
“Don’t get cocky, you brat. If you underestimate reality—”
“If! The situation were reversed!!”
Finally unable to contain herself, Zeek shouted. Even setting aside the dark emotions boiling inside her, she forced herself to think calmly. If their positions had been swapped, if it had been the other way around—
“Would the Master have stayed quiet?”
“……!!!”
Hans found himself unable to respond. If it was Isaac—who cherished his family more than anything—then even if the opponent had been Hades itself rather than the Hydra Guild, he would have drawn his sword without hesitation.
“Is family the kind of thing that turns its head and says there’s no choice?”
“……”
“At the very least, we should return what we’ve received!!”
By now tears were streaming down Zeek’s face. It was too idealistic. Reality was never that kind. Hans knew that better than anyone, yet for some reason his throat felt blocked. No words would come.
Zeek roughly wiped the tears from her eyes. That was enough. She didn’t need anything else. Even if she had to go alone, she would save the Master.
She turned away, only to frown at the three children standing in her path—Diego, Heres, and Sasha. They stood as if to block her, and Zeek reacted sharply.
“What do you want? Are you going to tell me I’m wrong too?”
Diego let out a sigh.
“What kind of nonsense is that? Why would we try to stop you?”
“Huh?”
“I’m saying we want to help.”
“Who asked for your help?! I just can’t stand those bastards!”
With his arms crossed, Diego glared at Heres, who had translated his words, and snapped. In truth, the children felt exactly as Zeek did. The Master was their savior. How could they simply watch from the shadows while their savior knelt?
“……Wait……”
“There’s no choice, senior.”
Hans tried to stop them. As the adult, he had a duty to restrain the children who didn’t understand reality. But Kain simply laughed as he walked straight past him.
How could anyone stop this?
“You brats! Let us join in too!!”
“Reality? Tell it to fuck off.”
“Yuliana, you shouldn’t say things like that.”
“I just couldn’t hold it in any longer. I’m sorry.”
Some people claim there is no meaning in helping others without expecting anything in return. That humans are creatures who forget kindness. It isn’t entirely wrong. But it isn’t the whole truth either.
Because there are definitely people who never forget the favors they’ve received.
Watching them, Zeek made a quiet vow.
I will definitely tear that rag of a bitch to pieces.
…Let’s pretend I didn’t hear that last part.